Waiting on You

Chapter 3

I wake up the next morning, sprawled across Tuckers chest, my hair in my eyes.

At first I panic, I try to relive what had happened the night before, through my fuzzy memory. And then I remember a sad Tucker falling asleep next to me.

I peel my hair away from my face, and when I do, I see Tucker looking at me. "Morning."

A laugh escapes my mouth, and I slide off of him and into a normal position.

The sun falls through my curtains like liquid gold. I sigh, wishing that I did not have to get out of bed, but when I hear the doorbell ring, I know that I will have to.

"Who's that?" Tucker asks. His voice rumbles deep in his throat lazily and his hair is messily spread over his forehead.

I sigh. "It's Juliette and Bel. They were supposed to come over to hang out today."

He groans. "Are you gonna make me leave?"

I sit up and lean over him, looking at his face. "Not unless you wanna listen to girls talk about all of the drama in their lives. And trust me... They have A LOT of drama."

"Okay, okay," he says. "I get the message."

There is a thumping noise coming up the stairs, sharing the same sound with a stampede.

"Rory!" My moms voice yells at me from downstairs. "Your friends are here. Come greet them, PLEASE."

"You better go," I turn to Tucker.

He runs his fingers through his hair. "Okay. Wish me luck at home."

I give him a sympathetic smile. "Okay."

Tucker heads towards the balcony. "Thanks, Ror."

He leaves just in time, because when my door opens, they do not question his presence. Because he is not there.

"Hey, girl." Juliette walks in swiftly, emblazoned in sequins and metallic colors, like she always was.

Bel trails behind her, looking rather bland next to Jules gold and glory.

"Hi Rory," Bel gives me a small wave.

I smile and wave at them, gesturing for them to come into my room, even though they had already let themselves in.

"How's life?" Juliette definitely spoke the most out of the three of us. When we were together, she pretty much spoke for all of us.

She and I had been best friends since the first day of kindergarten, when I fell off the slide and scraped my knee.

"Are you hurt?" She had kneeled by my side immediately, hunched over me, her vibrant red curls falling over me like a veil.

She walked me to the school nurse, and on the way there we talked. We talked about all things little girl. That was when I found my voice.

Unfortunately, I've lost it again, but I at least still have that moment to remember.

Now, my best friend was hovered over my dresser, plucking at my earrings. "These are cute," she chirped. "Don't you think, Bel?"

Bel, on the other hand, was more like me. She was more quiet. She was more plain. She sat in the middle of the classroom.

But, we hadn't really talked much. She just followed me and Juliette around, commenting on some things occasionally, and sometimes being just silent. Still, she was nice to have around.

"Ya," Bel responds, gazing at the hoops. "They are beautiful."

"Those would look good on you, Bel," I say. This was the truth. They would complement her pale skin and brown hair really well.

She blushes. "Oh, thanks."

"You can have them if you want," the hoops were from Target. I had bought them when I had first gotten my ears pierced and I was all excited about having every pair of earrings on this earth.

"Really?" Bel seems hesitant. I could tell she was never really in this situation.

"I don't mind." Lie. I would probably have a hard time giving them up. But, once they were gone, I probably wouldn't notice. I never really wore earrings.

"Thanks," she slips them onto her ears.

Pretty soon, we are sitting on the floor of my room. Fresh layers of paint have been added onto our nails, and we were laughing ferociously.

Time passes way too fast. I wonder where Tucker is, if he went back home. Probably not. I felt bad, I was sitting here with my friends while he was wandering around town.

As if the girls could hear my thought, there is a silence after that, and I feel like I need to do something, to fill this empty void.

"So... Rory," Juliette starts. I gulp. Hopefully she isn't going to ask me anything personal. Too late. "Have you heard from him lately?"

I sigh. "Well, no."

I can almost hear them holding their breath. "Are you... Angry?" Bel asks.

Angry. I wasn't sure what I was. Angry. Sad. Confused. They were all things that I had felt.

"He left me clues," I blurt out suddenly.

My heart stops. Was I not supposed to tell them? Would I be in trouble after this?

They both gasp. "Clues?" They mimic in unison.

I find myself crawling to my bed and reaching underneath. When I touch cardboard, I grasp its surface and pull.

My heart beats faster and faster as it comes closer to coming out from under the bed.

And then I see it. Again.

When I had first seen the box, I hadn't even opened it. It had hurt too much. So, I shoved it under my bed, being fine with knowing that I had a piece of him with me.

"That's from him?" Bel asks. She runs her fingers over its surface, and I cringe. When she reaches the top, she crinkles her eyebrows in confusion. "Did you reseal it?"

Juliette is the most quiet I have ever seen her. When I look her way, she looks at her hands.

"No," I answer. "I haven't opened it."

The room goes completely silent. I would say that I could still hear the birds chirping outside, but I couldn't. My thoughts were too heavy.

"Tell us the story, Aurora," Juliette says.

I take a deep breath.